The Omniscient Spring – the Whispering Water: Man and potajnica

Potajnice (intermittent/rhythmic springs) are a rare hydrographic phenomenon exclusively present in karst areas. They appear as a result of the rising and emptying of the siphon in the underground karst reservoir, while the phases when the water flows over and drains down most frequently last for s...

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Autor principal:	Bojan Novaković
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN FR SR
Publicado:	University of Belgrade 2021
Materias:	the Balkan Peninsula intermittent springs supernatural force healing water superstition tradition Anthropology GN1-890
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/70f22780a1f94cbeb92214bd9b422b46
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:70f22780a1f94cbeb92214bd9b422b462021-12-02T18:37:39ZThe Omniscient Spring – the Whispering Water: Man and potajnica10.21301/eap.v16i2.110353-15892334-8801https://doaj.org/article/70f22780a1f94cbeb92214bd9b422b462021-07-01T00:00:00Zhttps://eap-iea.org/index.php/eap/article/view/1141https://doaj.org/toc/0353-1589https://doaj.org/toc/2334-8801 Potajnice (intermittent/rhythmic springs) are a rare hydrographic phenomenon exclusively present in karst areas. They appear as a result of the rising and emptying of the siphon in the underground karst reservoir, while the phases when the water flows over and drains down most frequently last for several minutes or several hours. They are often accompanied by a distinct noise (rumbling, sizzling, bursting) which adds to the mysteriousness of this phenomenon. Up to this point in time, around one hundred of these flows have been detected worldwide and, when it comes to Europe, they are most frequent in the Balkan Peninsula, primarily in the range of the Dinarides. The subject of this paper is the human perception of this unusual hydrological phenomenon and reaction to it, which has brought about the birth of many interesting ceremonies and beliefs. In areas with predominantly Orthodox and Islamic traditions, the water from these springs is often regarded as healing and miraculous, which is not the case in the northwestern areas closer to Central Europe. Nevertheless, the entire area is eager to provide a logical explanation for this phenomenon. In the more distant past, some of these places had been subject to Christianisation through construction of churches in their vicinity and provision of a Christian interpretation of local beliefs and tales. Man interpreted the functioning of these flows in two ways – either as the existence of a supernatural being in the underground canal, which occasionally presents a barrier to the water flow, or as activities of a higher power which infallibly judges the moral righteousness of human beings and thereupon decides to either let the water flow or stops its flow. The ancient human tendency to tame the supernatural has enticed man to look for a way to predict the flow intervals which, under certain circumstances, could ensure or confirm social power for an individual or group. At some point, the monks took over the perennial monitoring of the flow rhythm of one such source in order to harmonise their prayers for the appearance of the “healingˮ water. The relation between man and the potajnica has always been ambivalent; therefore, one river, which for centuries was called Sveto vrelo (the Holy Spring), also has an alternative name – Đavolje vrelo (the Devil's Spring). Also, men tend to cross significant distances to reach water from one spring, but avoid drinking water from others precisely due to the identical disappearance of the flow. Nevertheless, these springs represent unrivalled points where the richness of the spirit and tradition of the population visiting them is embedded, and, more generally, the relationship between man, as the human being, and this enigmatic force of nature. Bojan NovakovićUniversity of Belgradearticlethe Balkan Peninsulaintermittent springssupernatural forcehealing watersuperstitiontraditionAnthropologyGN1-890ENFRSREtnoantropološki Problemi, Vol 16, Iss 2 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN FR SR
topic	the Balkan Peninsula intermittent springs supernatural force healing water superstition tradition Anthropology GN1-890
spellingShingle	the Balkan Peninsula intermittent springs supernatural force healing water superstition tradition Anthropology GN1-890 Bojan Novaković The Omniscient Spring – the Whispering Water: Man and potajnica
description	Potajnice (intermittent/rhythmic springs) are a rare hydrographic phenomenon exclusively present in karst areas. They appear as a result of the rising and emptying of the siphon in the underground karst reservoir, while the phases when the water flows over and drains down most frequently last for several minutes or several hours. They are often accompanied by a distinct noise (rumbling, sizzling, bursting) which adds to the mysteriousness of this phenomenon. Up to this point in time, around one hundred of these flows have been detected worldwide and, when it comes to Europe, they are most frequent in the Balkan Peninsula, primarily in the range of the Dinarides. The subject of this paper is the human perception of this unusual hydrological phenomenon and reaction to it, which has brought about the birth of many interesting ceremonies and beliefs. In areas with predominantly Orthodox and Islamic traditions, the water from these springs is often regarded as healing and miraculous, which is not the case in the northwestern areas closer to Central Europe. Nevertheless, the entire area is eager to provide a logical explanation for this phenomenon. In the more distant past, some of these places had been subject to Christianisation through construction of churches in their vicinity and provision of a Christian interpretation of local beliefs and tales. Man interpreted the functioning of these flows in two ways – either as the existence of a supernatural being in the underground canal, which occasionally presents a barrier to the water flow, or as activities of a higher power which infallibly judges the moral righteousness of human beings and thereupon decides to either let the water flow or stops its flow. The ancient human tendency to tame the supernatural has enticed man to look for a way to predict the flow intervals which, under certain circumstances, could ensure or confirm social power for an individual or group. At some point, the monks took over the perennial monitoring of the flow rhythm of one such source in order to harmonise their prayers for the appearance of the “healingˮ water. The relation between man and the potajnica has always been ambivalent; therefore, one river, which for centuries was called Sveto vrelo (the Holy Spring), also has an alternative name – Đavolje vrelo (the Devil's Spring). Also, men tend to cross significant distances to reach water from one spring, but avoid drinking water from others precisely due to the identical disappearance of the flow. Nevertheless, these springs represent unrivalled points where the richness of the spirit and tradition of the population visiting them is embedded, and, more generally, the relationship between man, as the human being, and this enigmatic force of nature.
format	article
author	Bojan Novaković
author_facet	Bojan Novaković
author_sort	Bojan Novaković
title	The Omniscient Spring – the Whispering Water: Man and potajnica
title_short	The Omniscient Spring – the Whispering Water: Man and potajnica
title_full	The Omniscient Spring – the Whispering Water: Man and potajnica
title_fullStr	The Omniscient Spring – the Whispering Water: Man and potajnica
title_full_unstemmed	The Omniscient Spring – the Whispering Water: Man and potajnica
title_sort	omniscient spring – the whispering water: man and potajnica
publisher	University of Belgrade
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/70f22780a1f94cbeb92214bd9b422b46
work_keys_str_mv	AT bojannovakovic theomniscientspringthewhisperingwatermanandpotajnica AT bojannovakovic omniscientspringthewhisperingwatermanandpotajnica
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The Omniscient Spring – the Whispering Water: Man and potajnica

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